John douglass



(No Model.)

J. DOUGLASS.

lBRIDLE BIT.

No.4345,955. Patented July 20, 1886..

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN DOUGLASS, OF BROOKLYN, NEV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO ANN DOUGLASS,

' OF SAME PLAGE.

BRlDLE-BIT.

E/ECEFECATON forming part of LettersrPatent No. 345,955, dated July 20,1886` (No modchl To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, JonN DoUGLAss, of Brooklyn, inthe county ot' Kingsand State of New York, have invented a new and useful TmprovementinFlexible Bits; and Idohereby declare that the following is a full andexact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, making a 1opart of this specification, in which Figurel isa longitudinal sectiontaken centrail y through the mouth-piece o f my improved flexible bit,with the rings and cheek-pieces in elevation; and Fig. 2, a transversesection in line .fr .r of Fig. l.

My invention relates to that class of bridlebits which are constructedwith a flexible mouth-piece formed with a pliable core protected by anouter rubber envelope, and has 2o for its object to avoid thedisadvantages attendant upon the flexible mouthpieces formed of metal,and to reduce the cost of manufacturing this class of bridle-bits.

In the accompanying drawings, A represent-s the core for themouth-piece, formed of leather or of rawhide as its equivalent,preferably in two longitudinal divisions, a a, each of a half-round orscmicircular cross-section, (see Fie. 2,) the flat faces of the twodivisions 3o being superimposed and firmly united in any suitablemanner-asfor example, by means of a strong water-proof cement, as shownin the drawings, or by means of transverse stitchesvso as to formjointly a cylindrical core ofthe proper diameter.

The rings B B, cheek-pieces C C, and heads D D are made of any desiredform; but for the sake of economy and strength each ring B is formedintegrally with its cheek-piece C 4o and head D, as shown in Fig. l. Aninternally-threaded socket, E, is provided at the side of each head,either within a cylindrical projection, F, formed in one piece with thehead, of a diameter corresponding with that .i5 of the central portionor body of the leather core A, as shown at the right in Fig. 1, or bymeans of a short tubular section or socketpiece, F, internally threadedand made to screw upon a threaded offset, G, projecting from the headintegrally therewith, as shown 5o at the left in the drawings, thetubular section being made to extend out beyond the end of the offset Gfar enough to form a socket thereat. The spiral grooves in the threadedsockets E E are deeply cut, to firmly engage the ends of the leathercore A, which are to be screwed therei nto.

In assembling the parts of the bit to complete it, one end of theleather core A is screwed fast into one of the threaded sockets F, the6o threads in the socket serving to cut and form the counterpart threadsupon the core as it is forced with a rotary movementinto the same. Vhilethe end of the core is compressed sufficiently to enter and work intothe socket, the body of the core is left free to swell ont and enlargesufficiently to correspond in diameter with the external diameter of thesocket. A rubber sleeve, H, is then slipped over the core and upon thesocket-piece to cover the same, 7o its end beingbrought to bear againstthehead and make a close joint therewith, as shown at win the drawings.This rubber sleeve is made long enough to cover the entire length of thecore and of both socket-pieces. After it has been fitted upon the coreand over one socket, as described, the opposite end of the core isscrewed into the opposite socket, the free end of the rubber beingcarried over the exterior of the socket-piece, so that when the core has8o been fully secured the rubber will bea-1' against the head at thatend in like manner as against the first head, presenting a neat finishedappearanee.

rllhesocketed projections F F from each head form solid bearings at eachend of the mouthpiece, to fit into the corners of the horses mouth andprovide the necessary purchase thereon to render the bit effective,while the remainder of the bit is pliable and flexible.

Vhenever it becomes necessary to renew the rubber covering, one of theheads may be detached from the core by holding the core tightly in avise close by the socket, and applying` the requisite force to thelatter to turn and 9 5 unscrew it; or, if the socket'be formed in thetubular section F', the latter may be unscrewed from the head-piece,leaving the attachment of the eore to its socket undisturbed. The rubbercovering having been previously out away, a new sleeve of rubber may beslipped in place over the eore, .and the head screwed back into placeagain.

I claim as my inventionl. The'i'lexible mouth-piece fora bridle-bit,constructed of two stri ps of leather, half-round -in erossseetion,united longitudinally to form a cylindrical core, in combination with anouter tubular rubber ease or covering, substantially in manner and forthe purpose herein set forth.

2. The combination of the heads D Din a bridle-bit, having` thecylindrical projections F F, a cylindrical mouth-piece or core, A, ofleather, screwed at either end into the projections F F, with a rubbertube covering the eore and the projections, substantially in the inan-Vner and for the purpose herein set forth.

3. The combination, in a bridle-bit, of the heads D D, a threadedoffset, G, projecting

